Laterally movable door



Nov. 10, 1953 e. MADLAND 2,658,244

LATERALLY MOVABLE DOOR Filed July 20, 1950 s Sheets- Sheet 1 v Q Q Q //V VE/V TOE? Gabe/EL Mam 5N0 Nov. 10, 1953 s. MADLAND LATERALLY MOVABLE DOOR Filed July 20, 1950 v -//v vcw. Toe- G. MADLAND LATERALLY MOVABLE DOOR Nov. 10 1953 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed July 20, 1950 Patented Nov. 10, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LATERALLY MOVABLE noon Gabriel Madla'nd, Chicago, Ill., assignor to The Youngstown Steel Door Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application July 20, 1950, Serial No. 174,984

4 Claims.

, 1 This invention relates to laterally movable doors.

Sliding flush doors for refrigerator cars are customarily mounted by mechanism embodying upper and lower cranks journalled respectively in guide members slidably associated with guide rails above the door openings in the ears and roller carrying carriages supported upon tracks below the door openings. By-means of this mechanism the doors can be moved laterally into and from the door openings and longitudinally along the tracks. In their movement along the tracks the doors are guided and retained upon cars by the tracks and roller carriages and by the guide rails and guide members.

Because of the cranks the doors are disposed after movement from the door openings so that their centers of gravity lie outwardly of the supporting rollers and guide rails thereby creating substantial frictional resistance to longitudinal movement particularly between the guide members and guide rails. The instant invention is accordingly particularly directed to structure which will reduce the frictional resistance of laterally movable doors during the longitudinal movement of the doors.

A further object is to provide structure which will shift the centers of gravity of laterally movable doors more nearly over the rollers carried by the door supporting carriages when the doors have been moved laterally from their door open- 1113s.

A further object is to provide structure which will permit shifting of the supporting tracks for laterally movable doors outwardly from the cars so as to dispose the weight of the doors more nearly over the tracks without a corresponding increase in the projection'of the structure beyond the cars.

A further object is to provide roller carriages for laterally movable doors which will obtain a reduction in the projection of the door mechanism outwardly of the cars when the doors are closed.

A further object is to provide roller carriages for laterally movable doors so constructed as to obtain vertical adjustment of the doors without resorting to special means for maintaining such adjustment.

Other objects of the invention will become clear as the description thereof proceeds.

In the drawings forming part of this specification:

Fig. v1 is a fragmentary elevation ofa refrigerator car equipped with laterally movable doors mounted thereon by structure embodying the in- 2 stant invention and supporting the doors for lateral and longitudinal movements.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail View, partly in section, of the lower right hand portion of the construction shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken on lin'e l l of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. -2 of a further embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 3 of theembodiment shown in Fig 5.

Fig. 7 is a vertical section taken on line 1-1 or Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings and more particularly to the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4. inclusive, the numeral l0 designates a, portion of a'side'wall of a refrigerator car. The wall is formed with the customary door opening H which is adapted to be closed'by means of a door l2 of any desired construction. When in closed position theouter face of the door lies flush with the outer face of the side wall 10 as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings and the inner face of the door (not shown) lies flush with the inner face of the side wall [0. V

To position the door within the door opening as noted above and to move thedoor laterally out of the door opening and support it for longitudinal movement along the'side wall I0 so as to expose the door opening the door carries spaced vertical bars 13 and I4 formed preferablyof pipes which are rotatably mounted upon the door by means of brackets 15, 'IB and H and brackets F8, I9 and 20. The upper ends of the pipes l3 and I 4 carry crank arms 2| and]: provided with spindles 23 and 24 journalled within guide members 25 and 2B slidably mounted upon a guide rail '21 secured to the side wall "I0 above the door opening. The lower ends of the pipes 13 and M carry crank arms 28 and '29 provided with spindles '30 and 31 journalled in roller carria es 32 and 33 which contain rollers "34 and 35 seated upon a supporting track 36 secured to the side wall '10 below the door opening.

Rotation of the pipes 13 and M and consequently lateral movement of the door into and from the door opening ll is obtained by means of levers 31 and 38 pi'votally mounted upon clevises 39 and 40 secured to the pip'es. Swinging movement is imparted to the levers 3'1 and 38 during the initial opening movement and final closing. movement or the door from-and intdthe door opening by a mechanism designated generally by the reference numeral 4| and embodying broadly a double-handled lever 42 and a saddle member 43 within which the adjacent ends of the levers 31 and 38 are received. Inasmuch as this mechanism forms no part of the instant invention it is believed that the brief description set forth above will sufilce.

Because of the crank construction described above, it will be apparent that when the door has been moved laterally from the door opening it will lie outwardly of the guide rail 21 and the track 36 so as to create an over-balanced weight which will create a substantial friction between the guide members 25 and 26 and the guide rail 21. The center of gravity of the door is accordingly offset outwardly with respect to the guide rail and the track. In accordance with the instant invention the center of gravity of the door is caused to be disposed more nearly in vertical alinement with the door track after the door has been moved from the door opening so as to reduce the frictional resistance between the guide members and the guide rail and thereby enhance the ease of longitudinal movement of the door.

To the accomplishment of this purpose while preventing encroachment of the door or any of the parts thereof upon the established tunnel clearance line, the track 36 which is customarily secured directly to the side wall is disposed in outwardly spaced relationshi thereto as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings and secured to the side wall by means of a plurality of brackets such as the bracket shown at 44. The door track 36 which comprises a horizontal tread 45, an inner relatively short depending flange 46 and an outer relatively long depending flange 41 is secured to the track brackets 44 as by means of rivets 48 which extend through the outer flange 41. This disposition of the track 36 provides space between it and the side wall of the car into which substantially hook-shaped members 49 and 50 formed on the roller carriage 32 and substantially hook-shaped members and 52 formed on the roller carriage 33 extend for slidable interlocking relationship with the relatively shorter track flange 46. Also the roller carriages 32 and 33 are formed with pockets 53 and 54 within which the spindles 36 and 3| are journalled. In accordance with the instant invention these pockets are so disposed as to lie in substantially longitudinal alinement with the rollers 34 and 35 which lie between the substantially hook-shaped members formed on the roller carriages.

The disposition of the pockets 53 and 54 permits the employment of means for obtaining vertical adjustment of the door which embodies longitudinally extending adjusting bolt. The lower portion of each of the pockets 53 and 54 contains wedge blocks 55 and 56 and 57 and 56. The spindles 36 and 3| bear upon the upper wedge blocks 56 and 56 which are adjusted to the desired position and maintained in such position by means of the adjusting bolts 59 and 66 which bear against the adjacent sides of these wedges. When the desired adjustment of the vertical position of the door has been obtained the adjusting bolts 56 and 66 are firmly secured by means of lock washers 6| and 62 of standard design and lock nuts 63 and 64.

4 side wall I0 as by means of rivets 65 extending through the relatively longer flange 41. The flange 41 accordingly lies inwardly, the web 46 projects outwardly from the side wall and the relatively shorter flange 46 is disposed outwardly of the flange 41. Roller housings, one of which is indicated at 66 are provided with outwardly extending substantially hook-shaped members 61 and 66 having slidable interlocking relationship with the flange 46 of the track as is more clearly shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings. It will be apparent from the showing of this figure that the disposition of the pockets formed in the roller carriages, one of such pockets being indicated at 69, so as to lie in substantially longitudinal alinement with the rollers, one of which is shown at 16, reduces the amount by which the roller carriages would project outwardly of the side wall of the car if such pockets were disposed so as to extend outwardly from the outer faces of the roller carriages in the customary manner. As shown more clearly in Fig. 6 of the drawings the means for adjusting the door vertically illustrated and described in connection with the first embodiment of the invention are utilized in the considered embodiment. Thus when the doors on opposite sides of the car are closed the overall distance crosswise of the car between the parts mounted upon and projecting outwardly from the doors is reduced.

The wedge blocks 55 and 56 and 51 and 56 are placed in the pockets of the respective roller carriages through openings formed in the rear wall thereof, these openings being closed by means of plates such as 1| welded in the openmgs.

It will be apparent that numerous changes and modifications in the details of the invention will be clear to those skilled in the art. It is intended, therefore, that all such modifications and changes be comprehended within this invention which is to be limited only by the scope of the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

1. In a railway car having a side wall provided with a door opening, a door seated within said door opening, a track, means securing said track to said wall below said door opening in outwardly spaced relation to said Wall, said track having an inner vertical flange, an outwardly extending web and an outer vertical flange, a guide and retaining rail secured to said wall above said door opening, a plurality of roller carriages having means extending downwardly between said track and wall, said means having hook shaped portions slidably interlocked with said inner vertical track flange, rollers carried by said carriages and having rolling engagement upon said web of said track, guide means having laterally overlapping relationship with said guide rail, means supporting said door upon said carriages and guide means for lateral movement into and from said door opening and longitudinal movement along said track, said supporting means embodying vertical bars rotatably mounted on said door and cranks secured to the lower and upper ends of said bars, said upper cranks having spindles journalled in said guide means, said carriages being provided with pockets disposed in substantially longitudinal alinement with said rollers, said lower cranks having spindles iournalled in said pockets.

2. A carriage for laterally movable doors adapted to support a said door for lateral movement into and from a door opening and longitudinal movement along a supporting track comprising a roller, a vertical spindle receiving pocket disposed in substantially longitudinal alinement with said roller in which a spindle is adapted to be slidably journalled, relatively movable vertically opposed wedges in said pocket upon which the lower end of a spindle is adapted to rest, and a substantially longitudinally disposed adjusting bolt extending into said pocket and engaging one of said Wedges for imparting movement to said one wedge.

3. A carriage for laterally movable doors adapted to support a said door for lateral movement into and from a door opening and longitudinal movement along a supporting track comprising a roller, a vertical spindle receiving pocket disposed in substantially longitudinal alinement with said roller in which a spindle is adapted to be slidably journalled, relatively movable vertically opposed wedges in said pocket upon which the lower end of a spindle is adapted to rest, a substantially longitudinally disposed adjusting bolt extending into said pocket and engaging one of said wedges for imparting move ment to said one wedge, and depending substantially hook-shaped members, said members being in substantially longitudinal alinement and lying on opposite sides of said roller.

4. A carriage for laterally movable doors adapted to support a said door for lateral movement into and from a door opening and longitudinal movement along a supporting track comprising a roller, a vertical spindle receiving pocket disposed in substantially longitudinal alinement with said roller in which a spindle is adapted to be slidably journalled, relatively movable vertically opposed wedges in said pocket upon which the lower end of a spindle is adapted to rest, a substantially longitudinally disposed adjusting bolt extending into said pocket and engaging one of said wedges for imparting movement thereto, and depending substantially hook-shaped members disposed inwardly of said roller, said members being in substantially longitudinal alinement and lying on opposite sides of said roller.

GABRIEL MADLAND.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,300,475 OConner Apr. 15, 1919 1,523,227 Mapes Jan. 13, 1925 1,938,926 Neuman Dec. 12, 1933 2,442,031 Beauchamp May 25, 1948 2,543,155 Dath Feb. 27, 1951 2,614,294 OConnor Oct. 21, 1952 

